Planting or parking? Where do the nation's priorities lie?

1 year, 7 months ago by Adam Male

Chelsea may be in bloom with the UK’s biggest flower show sweeping London, but apparently the craze isn’t extending into the gardens of the nation.

Many people from the ‘baby boomer generation’, could previously be relied on to lovingly tend their gardens, are now choosing to turn their back on high maintenance patches - instead preferring a patio or decking with plenty of sociable seating areas, somewhere to relax with a glass of wine after a hard day.

But it isn’t just baby boomers to blame. The UK’s top horticulturalists are airing their concerns that householders are choosing to concrete over their grassy front gardens, in favour of highly covetable off-street parking spaces, with buy to let landlords apparently the biggest culprits.

However, it was reported this week that UK councils have increased the cost of residential parking permits by an average of 51% since 2011, with residents in Birmingham now having to shell out a whopping £785 a year simply to park on the streets near their house. With this in mind, it’s hardly any surprise that we are seeing more and more of our green space disappearing in favour of a handy off-street parking space!